John W. DeFeo @johndefeo Twitter profile | Pikagi

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John W. DeFeo

@johndefeo

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Dad, analyst, artist. Grateful American. Former media exec at @LiveScience , @spacedotcom and @tomsguide . Politically sober. RTs and Likes ≠ Endorsements.

New York City

https://t.co/DN7ySZ5VKM

Joined December 2007

Don't wanna be here? Send us removal request.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

4 months

The four pillars of the modern "progressive" movement that is wreaking havoc across the Western world while simultaneously undermining trust in all sense-making institutions at once, from science to medicine to journalism to academia to the judiciary and beyond.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

I am not a Republican and I have zero admiration or respect for the Republican party, let alone Donald Trump, whom I've reviled since before he was President. That said, I consider this iteration of the Democratic party to be the greatest threat to U.S. democracy in my lifetime.

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Cernovich

2 years

Nazi aesthetic

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

3 years

Tonight, 70,000 maskless adults are shoulder to shoulder, enjoying life together in California. Tomorrow, approximately 7,000,000 California school-children will be forced to wear masks and keep apart from each other. Politics are a disease. End the cruelty. Unmask the kids.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

3 years

The COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare many shortcomings and frailties in our society, but for me, none has been more damaging than the collapse of objective journalism. I've worked in newsrooms for most of my career; I'd like to share how my experiences explain my view: 1/30 🧵

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

Remember when the media (and "public health") went berserk on @joerogan over his claim that young males suffered real risks of post-shot heart inflammation? Not only was Rogan correct at the time...the risk that he highlighted was understated as revealed by later research. 1/2

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

3 years

The percentage of a child's life lived during the pandemic: Age 1 - 100% Age 2 - 100% Age 3 - 67% Age 4 - 50% Age 5 - 40% Age 6 - 33% Age 7 - 29% Age 8 - 25% Segregation, inequity, forced dress, anti-socialization and "us vs. them" thinking is being presented as "normal." 1/4

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

This is extraordinary. An 18-month, $192,000,000 contract for a "Covid-19 graphic designer," bid non-competitively under an emergency contract authorized by an associate analyst who started working at the California Dept. of Public Health in Feb. 2021. Yes, that's $192 million.

@LauraPowellEsq

Laura Powell

@LauraPowellEsq

2 years

It appears that the @CAPublicHealth has a contract for graphic design services related to Covid-19 for $192 million. That's $10.7 million per month to produce images like this one. We must fight the Covid-industrial complex. Credit to @JimSmit95248518 & @hamill_law for sharing.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

For years, I was unable to see my nephews in person. When I was finally allowed into Canada in Feb. 2022, I was disallowed from taking them to the movies, the arcade, anywhere, not because I was unvaccinated, but because I didn't have a digital QR vaccine passport. #TrudeauMustGo

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

Why do mask mandates fail? Even with strict compliance and N95s? The video below (and the continuation in the next tweet) explain why. The rest of this🧵summarizes why I believe those pushing for mask mandates are dishonest &/or willfully ignorant &/or mentally unwell. 1/31

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

@ifihadastick Really scary stuff. The censorship. The lies. The collusion. The legislation crafted by foreign lobbyists. The use of federal law enforcement against ordinary citizens exercising constitutional rights. The ever-creeping infrastructure tied back to the CCP. The list is endless.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

I appreciate recent COVID-19 coverage from @nytimes and @washingtonpost . Nevertheless, corrections, clarifications, retractions and updates about previous COVID-19 reporting (and omissions) could fill each paper's A1-A20 section for a week. Some non-exhaustive examples: 1/42 🧵

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

Earlier this month, someone made the case to me that if Americans weren't so selfish and disrespectful, but instead, if they wore masks as commonly as people in Japan do, that Covid transmission would be snuffed out. Sadly, it seems like data has little power over delusion.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

The 2020 Great Barrington Declaration was: 1. Objectively correct on many points; 2. Embraced by a plurality (if not majority) of public health scientists; and 3. Censored or intentionally mischaracterized. This was written in 2020: things only acknowledged by the press now.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

In the video clips below, spanning 2009 to 2020, infectious disease experts laugh at the idea of mask mandates or mask-wearing to prevent illness (alluding to crime, ineffectiveness, loss of dignity and annoyance). Did "the science" change in April 2020? It did not. 4/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@backtolife_2023 "The weapons may be different, but the goals of those who perpetuate them is often the same." Like Trudeau, she is describing herself. When I hear her speak, I am reminded of past narcissistic authoritarians who manipulated via technology, censorship, projection, "love-bombing."

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

My governor, @GovKathyHochul , touted a maskless NY school visit via Facebook. Then she restricted the post. The next day, the rules changed. Now, she requires 24-month olds to wear masks while she routinely appears maskless in a crowd. This is not leadership in any form. 1/10

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

This thread is about reasons, not excuses. Journalists have printed and amplified demonstrably false statements made by politicians and public officials. Yet, to my mind, it is journalists who have the best platform and incentive to set the record straight. 🤞 30/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@politico It is only "the president's wallet" in places where the assets of a dictator are indistinguishable from the assets of the state. This is a ridiculous tweet, @politico .

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Yes, there are bad journalists. I should know: I was one of them. But, I had the benefit of good role models early in my career. I'll never forget the time I presented a single-source article to my editor. He said "What the fuck is this, an advertisement?" 3/30 Bringing me to:

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John W. DeFeo

1 year

This clip is from the Disney Junior show, "Rise Up, Sing Out." In my view, what is being depicted in this exchange is closer to psychological abuse than to social emotional learning. Consider the following points: 1/14

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

First, let me say that this thread is not an indictment of journalists, but rather an indictment of a system that produces bad journalism. The strange thing about systems is that they perpetuate and defend themselves, even when the participants of the system do not agree. 2/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

This now-deleted tweet is from an epidemiologist with a large following (including policymakers and journalists), a blue verification-checkmark on Twitter, and a profile including the title of "Dr" accompanied by a photo in a lab coat. 🧵1/13

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

3 years

The U.S. press has rushed, flubbed and left uncorrected many COVID-19 topics: Origin thesis, aerosols, masking, comorbidities, seasonality, natural immunity, With/From, scientific dissent, clinical trial parameters, censorship, bias risks, myocarditis, kid's mental health. 29/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Take all of the Covid-19 deaths from around the world, all ages, all-time, and add them up. The total is less than the number of children (age 5 and under) who have died from malnutrition during the same time period. Lockdowns don't save children's lives, they put them at risk.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

An important clarification: My lack of respect for a political party as an *institution* does NOT mean that I have no respect for all members of a party. There are members of both parties whom I respect and love. I believe in person over party:

@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

I used to be a card-carrying member of a political party. When I toed the party line, it was like having 50 million Americans who always agreed with me about who was good or bad, what was right and wrong, and what the only solution to a problem was. 1/13 🧵

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@ZubyMusic Wow, today I learned:

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Rapper Zuby identifies as female to smash weightlifting record

He has become an unlikely feminist icon: the weightlifting hip-hop artist and Oxford graduate who set out to demonstrate that athletes who are genetically male should not be competing alongside...

www.thetimes.com

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Unreasonable Story Counts: On average, the journalists that I've worked with had an expectation of producing 3-4 stories per day and one editor had 4-5 writers beneath. This was a corporate demand, not an editorial one, and it does not allow time for top quality work. 4/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

The FDA has a credibility crisis that went into overdrive in Summer 2021. Senior scientists resigned, both within the agency and within its advisory committee. Now, the agency seems to rubber stamp big $ products that present clear risks, yet questionable rewards. 2/2

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Words Edited, Numbers Not: In the absence of a technical editor, many stories are edited for clarity, but not for data integrity. The results are most often seen when millions/billions/trillions are confused, or when bad metric conversions slip by. 6/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Lack of Technical Editors: Editors with a STEM background or a specific technical speciality are expensive and in short supply. I've seen a single technical story that required approximately one week of editing time. Many publications cannot afford this. 5/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Exaggerating the capabilities of masks (or even N95 respirators) provides a *false sense of security*. Below, a certified industrial hygienist testifies about real-world limitations. His claims are backed by controlled studies. E.g. - 3/31

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Inefficacy of Straight News: A story that is a plain statement of facts presented without sensationalism, will, on average, receive 400-1,200 visits. This is a guaranteed financial loss for an ad-supported news website. 8/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@DaveTaylorNews In my opinion, any politician, financial institution or counter-party that claims to be blindsided by the demise of Credit Suisse (or for that matter, Deutsche Bank) is guilty of gross negligence, or failing that, is a grifter looking for a taxpayer handout.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@andy23tran I haven't yet confirmed the data in the chart below, but it happened across my feed last week and I find the premise to be both fascinating and horrifying. If true, it would explain a lot.

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Efficacy of Emotional Manipulation: To increase readership of a straight news story, there are emotional triggers that can be leveraged. E.g. Headlines that include "Why You Should..." or "Why We Must..." Writers learn these tactics by exposure, or are taught directly. 9/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Allowing children to develop friendships, freely, fearlessly and in person, may help to turn the tide. In the spirit of liberalism, I share this statement, authored by doctors and scientists and co-signed by 900+ medical and health professionals: 4/4

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Our Statement — Children, COVID, and the urgency of normal

www.urgencyofnormal.com

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Bullying From Big Tech: I've seen companies like Google threaten to remove major revenue sources from a news organization unless a particular story was unpublished. The reasons were often silly (like an elbow that looked like a breast), but the implications are sinister. 16/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Confirmation Bias in Story Selection: People who use search engines are, with their search data, broadcasting what they want to read. It is reverse broadcasting. News organizations get the message and prepare content with higher odds of success. 11/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Removal of Comment Sections: To mitigate threats and abuse (see #18 above), many websites have removed comment sections. There are unintended consequences. Almost every major error that I've corrected was first exposed to me in the comments on an article that I published. 21/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@sdbaral I am both surprised and embarrassed that the U.S. is continuing this harmful charade. I've been on the other end of this via ArriveCAN, and in my family, a glitch in the system (first denied, then acknowledged) resulted in a missed trip and a non-tech savvy senior citizen crying.

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Pageview Targets: In addition to story counts (see #4 above), many journalists are encouraged (or directly incentivized) to reach pageview targets. Doing so has an impact on story selection (see #8 below). 7/30

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

3 years

History may not repeat, but it echoes. The 1918 pandemic claimed 50,000,000 lives. The civil unrest that followed it claimed 75,000,000 more. In between, there was 20 years of addiction, blame, resentment, dehumanization and self-righteous morality. 2/4

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Search Engine Optimization: Many organizations rely on search engine traffic to sustain financial viability. I worked in this field for years and I believe that it is diametrically opposed to accountable journalism. Two major reasons listed below: 10/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@paulkrugman This whole thread comes across in horrifically bad faith. Look at the age-based outcomes of Covid-19, then the distribution of population aged 65 and over in each of those respective states. DeSantis, by far, had among the most scientific and medically-ethical pandemic responses.

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Bullying From Lawyers: Some of the best journalism that I've seen firsthand was responded to with massive 8-figure lawsuits. Not every news organization has legal protections, insurance and a general counsel who stands behind good journalism. 17/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Rewrites for Marketability: Reporters and editors are losing control of their own words, even within the body content of articles. Some of the articles that I wrote years ago have been edited to include marketing buzzwords and dubious links. 12/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Bullying From Sales: I once assigned a story that, unbeknownst to me, called into question the business model of an advertiser. The head of sales screamed at me in front of the entire newsroom. Luckily, my editor defended me. Not all do. 14/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Inability to Hire Talent: I have twice tried to hire someone who was significantly more talented than I was. I had no problem with an employee earning more than me, but my company did. It makes no sense: Winning teams don't pay their coaches more than MVPs. Media does. 25/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Where I live, NY, the governor used taxpayer dollars to buy rapid tests at a price more than $230,000,000 above market value. (That was the overpayment, not the total cost.) The beneficiary: A major campaign donor of hers. Covid emergency declarations seem like a costly scam.

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Bullying From External PR: I once published the compensation packages of highly-paid CEOs. It was a matter of public record, yet a powerful PR executive (who represented one of those CEOs) demanded that the story be retracted and for me to be fired. 15/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Sensational Feedback Cycle: Sensational stories often get sensational pageviews, which triggers more rewards from related content algorithms via companies like Outbrain and Taboola. When sensationalism is rewarded, objectivity is punished. 27/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@EpiEllie No, it isn't. It is more akin to installing a chain-link fence to "stop" the transmission of Zika-carrying mosquitoes. Plus, masking imposes harms on those with impaired hearing, speech delay, eczema, asthma, prosopagnosia, BFRBs...too many to list here.

@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

If an N95-style respirator isn't perfectly sealed, it isn't capable of filtering an aerosolized respiratory pathogen. The video below shows how "fit-testing" works. Masks cannot filter aerosolized particles (see above) and an unsealed N95 respirator is merely a mask. 2/31

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John W. DeFeo

1 year

@justin_hart @KevinKileyCA "We never forced anyone to do anything" - Xavier Becerra 👆 Spoken like a narcissistic abuser, @SecBecerra . "Gives excuses, denies the abuse occurred, or says that it wasn't as bad as the victim claims." - Stage 3 👇

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Corrections Therefore Buried: Should a reader be so lucky that a story is corrected, the new information is likely to be viewed 1-2% as often as the misinformation. (I have measure this directly). I.e. Bad info gets 50-100x the exposure that the good does. 24/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

The NEJM suggested that universal masking may not have a scientific nor logical basis, yet cited masks as "talismans" that may increase a "sense of safety, well-being, and trust." (A prelude to further arguments conflating perception with reality.) 5/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@US_FDA Since the resignations of Gruber and Krause, heart inflammation risks have been firmly established in various demos/cohorts, multiple countries have suspended pediatric use, and the latest emergency authorizations have been predicated on 10 humans, then 8-10 mice, respectively.

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Threat of Revoked Access: Invitations to conferences and press briefings are in short supply. It can take years to earn an invite. On the other hand, a single critical story may result in revoked credentials and a complete blackballing of a journalist or publication. 19/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

A chronology of my COVID-19 bookmarks: It highlights the missed moments, the reversals, the inconsistencies, the false sense of control, and the gaslighting that we've endured over two years. Note: Endorsement/refutation not implied by tweets in timeline. 1/117

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

The response to Covid-19 has been like a worldwide Stanford prison experiment. Every megalomaniac, narcissist and sycophant has learned firsthand what can be achieved through "roles, rules, symbols, group identity and situational validation [of repulsive, dehumanizing behavior]".

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Make What We Sell: A media sales team, left unchecked, will close almost any deal that will result in financial benefit for the sales team (not the news organization). As a result, journalists are forced to create content to fulfill questionable campaigns. 13/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Textile masks were often mocked as a superstitious relic of the past. On Apr. 2, 2020, The Washington Post dismissed them as "useless." Ironically, on the next day, Apr. 3, the Trump administration recommended them: 6/31

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Violent Threats: In addition to lawsuits (see #17 above), some of the best journalism that I've seen firsthand was responded to with threats of death or rape. Credible or not, these threats are terrifying and they take an emotional toll. 18/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

The "Shock Jock" Exception: Top-notch reporters and data journalists struggle for competitive pay (see #25 above), but many newsrooms will offer big bucks to blowhard columnists. It may result in reporters taking harder (and less objective) stances. 26/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

If the filtration capability of an N95 is compromised by a gap the size of a human hair, then what of cloth masks? A 2015 cluster randomized trial found that workers who wore cloth masks presented more illness than those who wore no mask at all: 7/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

If an N95-style respirator isn't perfectly sealed, it isn't capable of filtering an aerosolized respiratory pathogen. The video below shows how "fit-testing" works. Masks cannot filter aerosolized particles (see above) and an unsealed N95 respirator is merely a mask. 2/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Closing Thoughts #5 Mandates are ineffective, medically unethical, and thus, unjustifiable. I believe that those who continue to advocate for mandates are undeserving of power, let alone extraordinary emergency powers, and are unfit for public service. 31/31

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Major conflicts over the last 200 years have a commonality: They were heralded by a rise in the use of the word "enemy" within literature. Today, it happens on social media. Source: 3/4

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Literal Lack of Boundaries: Many newsrooms have open floor plans that can result in undue (and often, unintended, pressure). E.g. A CEO leans on the desk of a 21-year old reporter and asks why hasn't __ been covered yet. That story is often written, like it or not. 20/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Patently false: Mask mandates are refuted by empirical data worldwide. Meanwhile, mask policies spread harms (such as impaired speech and language development, body focused repetitive behaviors, social isolation, eczema and other allergic reactions, etc.). 1/6

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Corrections Kill Momentum: When a correction is added to the top of a story (even something as innocent as mis-spelling of a name), the velocity of pageviews and social sharing falls precipitously. I have measured this directly. 22/30

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Corrections Are Embarrassing: "Soft corrections" are a way to avoid retraction. I did it early in my career. E.g. I made a mistake in my bond math; a reader writes "This doesn't make sense unless it's a zero-coupon bond." Me: "Er, yeah, that's what I meant." I didn't. 23/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

P.S. This is an actual signatory of the "Open Letter to Spotify" that called on the platform to take action against Rogan and others spreading "misinformation." Some might recognize her as the MD who fabricated, well, pretty much everything. And profited from it, too.

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John W. DeFeo

3 years

Effects of Apathy: This thread shows how journalists have suffered abuse by a thousand cuts. It's no surprise that cheap sourcing results in sensational stories that are too bountiful to correct: 28/30

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Two of the biggest exaggerations of the pandemic: 1. The risk posed to children; and 2. The efficacy of masks. The result: Institutionalized child abuse.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

It is harder to "follow the science" when "the science" involves taking databases offline, using burner phones, encouraging private e-mail usage (to avoid FOIA requests), misdirecting reporters with a curated list of talking points, and giving data-editing permissions to the CCP.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@JamesMelville Published fewer than 24 hours apart:

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John W. DeFeo

1 year

Give someone a 100-question minimal choice test. If the person gets a 0, what does it mean? Statistics would suggest that the person knew all the answers, or, was otherwise manipulated. With Covid-19, experts got almost every conceivable thing incorrect. I have concerns. 1/5

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@ninaturner An emergency declaration, if ever justified, is intended for a brief period in which legislators cannot reasonably react to a dire, time-sensitive challenge. To extend Covid emergency powers now is to subvert democracy and the rule of law. A "noble lie."

@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

11. The Partisan Opportunist The partisan opportunist sees a crisis, then exploits it, extends it and amplifies it such as to enact powers and legislation that he or she has been eager to deploy. The nature of the crisis is not relevant, just a means to a desired end. 12/13

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John W. DeFeo

2 months

The President's decline isn't the story, nor is the faux surprise, nor the complicity in the coverup. The story is that a totalitarian movement has crept across the West over the last decade, masquerading as progressive enlightenment, yet sculpting the West in the image of China.

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@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

The use of face masks resulted in "no significant reduction in influenza transmission" outside of a healthcare setting, according to the findings of a May 2020 CDC-published analysis of 10 randomized controlled trials that spanned 1946-2018. 9/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Three u̶n̶k̶n̶o̶w̶n̶ scientists [present evidence that] SARS-CoV-2 has s̶o̶m̶e̶ genetic features that t̶h̶e̶y̶ ̶s̶a̶y̶ would appear if the virus had been stitched together by some form of engineering. It is unclear yet whether this is accurate. [The code and analysis are public.]

@TheEconomist

The Economist

2 years

Three unknown scientists claim SARS-CoV-2 has some genetic features that they say would appear if the virus had been stitched together by some form of engineering. It is unclear yet whether this is accurate

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Masks pose a risk of self-contamination after extended clinical use (> 6 hours), calling into question the wisdom of reusable masks. Furthermore, workers reported discomfort, headache, and breathing/communication issues during extended mask wearing: 8/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Hey, @nytimes : For as long as the paper deems Apoorva Mandavilli worthy of employment, she is worthy of the paper's most exacting technical editor. Her errors are frequent and extraordinary, including order-of-magnitude overstatement of hospitalizations, deaths and fatality rate.

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John W. DeFeo

1 year

"A microaggression is when someone says and does something that makes you feel bad." Hard no. Feelings are not generated externally, and even within oneself, feelings are subject to the vagaries of environment as well as emotional regulation, or, emotional dysregulation. 6/14

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

My daughter was beaming when she came home from school yesterday. Before I could ask why, she told me that she had lunch with her friends in the school cafeteria. This was the first time in 2+ years. Until Tuesday, she had been forced to eat a socially distanced lunch in her lap.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@mehdirhasan First, that is not an accurate number. Second, of all the U.S. children who tragically died during the deadliest pandemic in a century, around 99% of those kids died from other causes. Third, the "protections" had no scientific basis and are correlated with rising non-Cov deaths.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Forcibly masking a child in diapers is a cruel and indefensible public policy that is unique to the U.S. (and one that was rigorously enforced in New York City). There are no benefits to this abuse, yet the physical/psychological/developmental harms are myriad. 26/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Meanwhile in Europe (where many kids were never forced to mask), a large scale, apples-to-apples study found no benefit from school mask mandates. The U.S. press neglected to report on it, opting to promote the flawed Duke study (see above). 19/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

Closing Thoughts #1 Political- and public-health leaders have been dishonest about masks and mandates since 2020. E.g. G7 attendees posing for a photo with N95 masks, then promptly removing them. A physician ordering masks only for a press conference. "Noble lies," etc. 27/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@PassaicSchools Is the school district aiming to teach children that superstition is more powerful than objective, scientific reality? That medical ethics are no longer necessary. That narcissistic abuse is to be tolerated? What is the lesson, Passaic Public Schools?

@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

Why do mask mandates fail? Even with strict compliance and N95s? The video below (and the continuation in the next tweet) explain why. The rest of this🧵summarizes why I believe those pushing for mask mandates are dishonest &/or willfully ignorant &/or mentally unwell. 1/31

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John W. DeFeo

1 year

Aggression is a behavior that has the intention to inflict damage or harm. Is that really what happened here, at a small scale? Or, did it seem akin to childhood curiosity about a still-new world? 5/14

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

In additional to being empirically and demonstrably ineffective, mask mandates often violate all four pillars of medical ethics. Autonomy and consent are revoked, beneficence is statistically improbable and maleficence (harms) are all-too real, especially in children. 25/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

I used to be a card-carrying member of a political party. When I toed the party line, it was like having 50 million Americans who always agreed with me about who was good or bad, what was right and wrong, and what the only solution to a problem was. 1/13 🧵

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

A widely-cited June 2020 paper claiming that face masks were critical to prevent transmission of SARS-CoV-2 was met with calls for retraction from scientists who called the paper "dangerously misleading," and lacking "any basis in evidence." 10/31

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@ProfEmilyOster @TheAtlantic The more I think about the premise of this piece, the more I'm bothered by it. I'm not against forgiveness, I believe it is important, but one does not offer amnesty while the crime is currently being committed: The abuses are still happening now!

@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

3 years

@LambourneCarol "The best reparation for the suffering of victims and communities - and the highest recognition of their efforts - is the transformation of our society into one that makes a living reality of the human rights for which they struggled. We should forgive but not forget." -Mandela

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John W. DeFeo

1 year

The boy is not given an opportunity to respond. His feelings are assumed. And so follows a declarative, yet fallacious, statement: "That's a microaggression." 4/14

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@US_FDA

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

My daughter was excited to receive her first-ever yearbook yesterday. When we opened it up, it was full of beautifully-printed color photos, the majority of which are indistinguishable. Classmates, teachers, all in masks. It seems like a parody. A joyless, dystopian parody.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

In my opinion, one of the most underreported stories of the pandemic is how the U.S. Democratic party sowed doubt and fear about a rushed vaccine (prior to the election), then pivoted to ignoring their own advisers, mandating the vaccine, and pushing ever-more shots without data.

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John W. DeFeo

2 years

@PostOpinions @kathleenparker No.

@johndefeo

John W. DeFeo

2 years

In the video clips below, spanning 2009 to 2020, infectious disease experts laugh at the idea of mask mandates or mask-wearing to prevent illness (alluding to crime, ineffectiveness, loss of dignity and annoyance). Did "the science" change in April 2020? It did not. 4/31

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John W. DeFeo

1 year

"You know what, he's wrong!" To moralize a childhood observation, not even in relative terms such as "hurtful," but into absolute terms, to be "wrong," is to risk cultivating shame at a young age. 7/14

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